District rep named to committee

After a six-month delay, a Rainy River District tourist outfitter has been named to a special committee to represent northern interests for the Ontario Tourism Marketing Partnership Corp. (OTMPC).
Nancy Hanson, co-owner of King Island Resort near Nestor Falls, was one of four northern candidates submitted by the provincial cabinet to sit on a special committee within OTMPC to be called the Northern Tourism Marketing Committee (NTMC).
The move came about partly due to a meeting with Premier Ernie Eves and a representative of the Northwestern Ontario Association of Chambers of Commerce (NOACC) when the premier was in Thunder Bay on Monday.
NOACC president Tannis Drysdale said the long-delayed appointments will be of great use to the tourism industry in the north, which is experiencing some difficulty due to the affects of the U.S. ban on meat imports from Canada as a result of the “mad cow” incident in Alberta last month.
Since the ban also applies to other ruminants, such as deer and moose, tourist operators have become alarmed by the drop in business from American hunters.
Now that a parliamentary committee has been struck, it is hoped the panel—once it has been selected—will be able to repair some of the damage to the lucrative tourism industry in the north.
“We’re happy it’s finally moved from the premier’s office and into the committee,” said Drysdale.
The names will be submitted to a parliamentary committee consisting of members from all three parties at Queen’s Park for final approval. Drysdale said if all the names are accepted without challenge, the committee could be at work within two weeks.
The committee will work with a $5.6-million budget from the province to put together a program to form partnerships with the private-sector to market the unique experiences of Northern Ontario.